Ford’s US sales rose 6% in September
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS October 1, 2013 7:18AM
In this Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2013 photo Chevrolet passenger cars form a row on a dealer's lot in Needham, Mass. U.S. auto sales for September are released on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Steven Senne_
Updated: October 1, 2013 9:52AM
DETROIT — Ford’s U.S. sales rose 6 percent in September, with strong car sales making up for slower sales of SUVs.
Ford said sales of the Fusion midsize sedan jumped 62 percent over last September, to 19,972. Sales of the subcompact Fiesta rose 28.5 percent to 5,043, while sales of the C-Max hybrid, which went on sale last fall, more than doubled to 2,182.
But sales of the Escape SUV — one of Ford’s best sellers — dropped 2 percent to 22,607, and Explorer SUV sales were up just 1.5 percent.
F-Series pickup truck sales, which have seen big increases all year, were up 10 percent to 60,456.
Ford said its Lincoln luxury brand sales dropped 5 percent as increases for the MKZ and MKS sedans couldn’t outweigh lower SUV sales.
Chrysler said its U.S. sales rose 1 percent in September on strong performances from the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Ram pickup. Chrysler says it sold 143,000 cars and trucks last month. September was the company’s 42nd-straight month of sales gains.
General Motors reported its September sales dropped 11 percent from a year ago. Even the company’s big pickup trucks saw sales declines, with the Chevy Silverado down almost 11 percent and the GMC Sierra off 2 percent.
Industry analysts are predicting that total U.S. auto sales fell about 4 percent because Labor Day weekend was counted in August figures this year The normally strong weekend probably pulled sales from September into August.
